


I'll look after you

by karamel_dreams



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Mon-El gets sick, Post season 3 but Mon-El never left and karamel got back together, cue a worried af Kara
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-27
Updated: 2018-10-27
Packaged: 2019-08-08 03:08:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16421213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karamel_dreams/pseuds/karamel_dreams
Summary: With an eclipse fast approaching, Mon-El gave Kara his Legion ring to protect her from any harmful effects. Little did she know eclipses can actually harm him too.





	I'll look after you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [93Mika](https://archiveofourown.org/users/93Mika/gifts).



> This one's for my M, an amazing friend and the most precious gift I've gotten out of shipping karamel.  
> This is, like, 3 weeks late, but I promised so here it is. Love you to the moon!
> 
> Hope the rest of you enjoy this as well. ♡

With a heart thundering inside her chest, Kara rushed to the DEO gym where Mon-El had locked himself. She was running fast enough her feet almost lifted off the ground, but she didn't care. She probably looked like a mad woman -hair disheveled and face panicked- as she searched for her boyfriend. Still, the only thing she could focus on was Mon-El's erratic breathing echoing from two rooms away. Everything else was sort of a blur, fading as  _he_ moved above all else, her one and only priority at the time.

The blonde stopped in front of a closed door. She peeked inside, and just like she'd expected, she found Mon-El's crouched form backed in a corner. She didn't move to step past the door though, not knowing whether she was wanted or allowed. "Mon-El?" she called from outside, one palm resting against metal while the other brushed hair away from her eyes in a typically nervous action.

Mon-El didn't respond but his breath hitched, and despite the fact that she couldn't see it anymore, Kara heard the wiggle of his hips and his frail attempts to not make a sound.

"Mon-El, baby, I know you're in there," she spoke once more, just as softly and quietly as before. "Can I come in?"

Again, no response was offered from her hiding man, and Kara couldn't help the sigh that escaped her mouth. She turned and pressed her back against the door, her eyelids fluttering closed, a knot forming in her throat. She swallowed hard and waited. She counted the beats of his heart, counted his raged breaths, and although she knew Mon-El was shutting down on her, she stayed there. It didn't matter if he wouldn't let her in. She had to be close, so he would know she wasn't going anywhere.

"It's alright if you want to be alone right now. I just want to know if you're okay. Are you?" she tried again, the silence still mocking her. "Mon-El, please, I'm worried."

"I hurt him," came a broken whisper from the other side, audible only to the blonde's enhanced hearing.

"Whom?" Kara asked, her blue eyes blinking open and wide in anticipation of Mon-El's response.

"Winn," Mon-El said, "I hurt him, I-" he stopped, and Kara knew without checking that he'd backed further into his corner, trying harder to hide, to disappear.

The blonde's brows knitted together in confusion. "Winn is fine," she argued, "I just saw him."

"I hurt him, Kara," Mon-El insisted, voice rough and hinting at a sharpness Kara knew held anger behind. "I promised I could help him train and I- I lost control. I hurt him."

Kara didn't know what to say, but she could understand why Mon-El was beating himself up. She recognized the self-loathing, the regret, the blame that weighed him down. She'd felt it all too many times; whenever she'd been a little too careless and left bruises on the people she loved, or when they had to restrain themselves around her because she was too powerful and they couldn't let her get carried away.

It wasn't new to her and that only made her worry about Mon-El more. Because Mon-El wore his heart on his sleeve and he had a tendency to punish himself so quietly and secretly that often times she didn't even know there could be a turmoil inside of him. He'd mastered the act of hiding, and after he'd left, after he'd lost her, there were sides of him Kara was still figuring out, things about him that she hadn't learned yet. And that terrified her. It shook her to her core. Because she couldn't protect him from what she couldn't see and she couldn't chase away the demons he wouldn't tell her about.

"How did you hurt him?" she asked, just to keep him talking, so he wouldn't slip back into his head and block her out again.

"I gripped his arm too hard. I- he flinched Kara. He was afraid of me, I saw it in his eyes," came the desperate response.

"Mon-El," the blonde turned to face the door. She peeked inside once more and saw him holding his head, his hands slightly shaking. "I promise you, Winn is fine, he's not scared of you," she tried to comfort him.

"He should be. I hurt him," Mon-El insisted.

"He knows you didn't mean to. And he's worried, as am I. Baby, let me in, please?"

A pause followed until a soft click disrupted the silence and the door opened. Kara stalled for a second, waiting for Mon-El to step out, but he didn't. So, she decided to step in instead.

Her gaze landed on him the second she'd walked in the room. He was wearing his training clothes -the same black sweats provided by the DEO that Winn had been clad in when she'd seen him only minutes beforehand- and his gray eyes connected with her own. He looked at her with a hint of shame that broke Kara's heart, but before she inched closer, she took a second to take the image in, to study her boyfriend's form.

"It's okay, you're okay," she told him and swallowed hard when Mon-El shook his head. He lowered his gaze, suddenly more interested in his shoes, and Kara stole a quick glance around. The place was a wreckage; rubble littered the floor and the walls had fist-shaped bumps all over. The fake, humanlike figures used for training were in pieces, scattered and damaged beyond repair, and metal scraps were lodged in various places, although the blonde had no idea where those had come from. "Did you do all this?" she asked in a cautious tone.

Mon-El gave her a small nod and shrugged a shoulder, still not meeting her eyes.

"Mon-El, what's wrong?" She kneeled in front him and reached for his hands.

He shook his head again, gaze heavy and dull. "I don't know," he rasped out.

Kara's lips pulled down in a frown. Her crinkle made an appearance and she stretched a hand to brush Mon-El's hair away from his forehead. His skin was warm to the touch, too warm to be normal, and that made her brows raise in surprise. She didn't say anything though, only leaned in to place a kiss underneath his hairline, testing the temperature just like she'd seen Eliza do to Alex when the sisters had been younger.

"You feeling okay, baby?" she asked and cupped his face with gentle fingers. All soft voices and feather-like touches she was, and Mon-El melted into it -into her- with barely any restraint.

"'m tired," he mumbled and Kara nodded.

"Do you want to go home?"

Mon-El didn't respond. He blinked slowly, licked his dry lips, and repeated a previously said phrase. "Kara, I hurt Winn," his forehead creased in worry.

"No, Winn is fine," the blonde assured. "He's okay, I promise. Now c'mon, I'm taking you to the med bay, you're running a fever, love."

"I'm fine," Mon-El tried to protest but it was all in vain.

"You sure are," Kara rolled her eyes and kissed his lips to silence his complaints.

**\---**

A couple of hours later the pair had retreated to their shared loft and settled on the couch. They were quiet at the moment, although the same couldn't be said for earlier. After forcing Mon-El to follow her to the med bay and let Alex draw some blood, which had been difficult in and of itself, Kara had to argue with him to call it a day and let her take him home. He'd protested about feeling okay and having a shift to finish, and when that didn't work and Alex had given him permission to leave, he'd changed tactics. He'd tried to guilt Kara into staying at the DEO, claiming the city needed her more than he did, and nothing was wrong with him anyway. However, the heroine had had none of it, and with a stern look and a raised brow she'd had him shutting his mouth and accepting her plan.

Getting food into him had been a struggle as well, but Kara hadn't been as insistent about that one. Mon-El's pale face was enough of a warning to have her backing down and focusing on being more attentive than pressing. So she'd gently led him to the couch and told him to lie down, although he wouldn't let her leave his side. Not that she'd intended to, therefore she'd agreed right away.

"Why didn't you tell me about this?" Kara asked, a hand reaching for a blanket to cover Mon-El up. "You're burning up, it might be serious."

"It's not," Mon-El mumbled in response. His head rested on the blonde's chest as his eyes dropped shut.

"You don't know that," she scolded and massaged his back with experienced hands. "It could be your lead allergy, or a virus, or something else much more dangerous. We're not supposed to get sick, Mon-El, yet here you are all feverish and slurring your words. This is not good," she fretted.

The tired hero lifted his body so he wasn't completely laying on the blonde and raised his head to meet her eyes. "Hey," he called softly, "it's fine, I'm not dying, I probably just tired myself out. You know I can't burn my powers out like you, I get sick instead, it happens."

Kara nodded at him, accepting the words even though she was having trouble believing them. Her bottom lip jutted out so she bit it and kept on rubbing Mon-El's back to cover up her fidgetiness. Her head was spinning, entertaining a dozen different scenarios, all of which ended badly and left her feeling hollow. But Mon-El seemed to sense her uneasiness, despite the fact that she hadn't fully voiced it. Thus he squeezed her tighter and buried his nose in her neck, mumbling reassurances under his breath. It wasn't enough to stop the irrational thoughts, but it was enough to calm her down for the time being.

**\---**

Some time later, Mon-El groaned and tried to swat Kara's hand away when she attempted to check his temperature for what seemed like the hundredth time. "Kara," he whined and fumbled with his clothes. He was hot and sweaty and his shirt had soaked through, sticking to his skin, adding to his discomfort. He sat up, needing to take his shirt off, but the movement must have been too fast because his head began to spin. He grimaced at the sudden dizziness and tried to clear his blurry vision by blinking his eyes repeatedly.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," the blonde observed him, deeply concerned. "Are you sure you don't want to go back to the DEO? Alex can run more tests to figure out why you're sick."

"I'm not up for more needles and poking right now," Mon-El replied, patient as ever even as he leaned his head on Kara's shoulder—it'd felt too heavy and he wasn't sure he could keep himself upright, so he needed a minute to rest.

"But you're getting worse," Kara argued, a hint of a whine in her tone.

"It'll pass," he lied.

"How are you feeling?" she asked before dropping a kiss atop his head.

"Gross," Mon-El mumbled. "I wanna take a shower," he decided and attempted to get up.

"No," Kara disagreed and held him down with an arm around his waist. "You can barely stand, I'm not letting you take a shower alone. I can help you change clothes if you want."

"Babe," Mon-El began but the protest faded quickly. He knew the blonde was worried about him, so he sighed and turned to find her eyes. "Come shower with me," he suggested instead.

"Are you sure?" Kara searched for an answer within his hazy gaze. Mon-El nodded and reached for her hand, pulling the blonde closer with a tight grip.

The two stumbled in the bathroom, Mon-El itching to get out of his sticky shirt and Kara watching, ready to steady him if need be. She ran around the room in a whoosh, grabbing towels and clothes and other necessities, which took her only a second, and then she was back at Mon-El's side. She shook her head fondly when he grumbled and sighed after getting his head stuck and struggling to pull his shirt off. And she bit mocking words back as she helped him free himself.

"You're shaking," she said quietly, lifting his shirt up and off for him. A hand caressed his cheek and let her know he was getting warmer by the minute.

"That's you, you make me nervous," Mon-El tried to joke. His mouth formed a crooked smile but the blonde didn't buy it—simply because it didn't quite reach his eyes.

He undressed himself at a normal speed, too tired and out of it to use his powers, and Kara did the same, although much quicker. And for once, she didn't care about the pile on the floor, nor did she scold him about leaving his dirty clothes out of the laundry basket. She was too busy fussing over him and taking care of every little thing so he didn't have to.

They stepped into the shower once the water had warmed up and Mon-El immediately released a sigh of relief. Kara noted how the shivers softened and his gaze became more focused within the span of a few minutes. She was still too worried though, too tense and careful and on edge. Because she'd never seen him like that, she'd never seen him get that sick again. (Except for the times he'd almost died when he'd first arrived on Earth, but they'd known the reason back then.) And the fact that he was trying to cover it up the best he could only added to her concern.

"I can do that myself," Mon-El protested feebly when Kara started washing his hair.

"Hush," she pecked his lips, "let me take care of you."

"Thank you," he mumbled, eyes closed, shoulders relaxing. He leaned back and basked in the attention and love he was receiving, but perhaps he was more out of it than he'd previously thought. A cracking sound forced him to blink his eyes open again and it didn't take more than a second to realize he'd broken the shower tiles he'd rested against. "Damn it," he cursed under his breath, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

Kara furrowed her brows at him. "It's okay," she assured, "are your powers getting out of control?"

Mon-El shrugged, "just a little…sluggish," he admitted and leaned forward, falling into Kara's embrace and resting his forehead on her shoulder.

The blonde wrapped an arm around his waist and held him close, her other hand skipping across his skin. She brushed his hair, mapped the route from his ear to the nape of his neck, caressed his back before returning to his face. She soothed and smoothed and let her hands wander, sensing Mon-El relax the longer he stayed under the warm water and into her secure hold. And she didn't stop, didn't pause, didn't care about the water they were wasting or the time that ticked by. She just stood there and offered all the love and comfort she had too much of as far as he was concerned. Because she didn't love him any less when he was at his weakest or the most vulnerable. In fact, it was at times like that one when she wasn't afraid to give him her all. And she liked how he soaked up the affection, how he accepted it with an open heart and an unguarded mind, how he didn't question it, just surrendered to it and trusted her to hold him up for as long as he struggled to support his own weight.

"Mon-El?"

"Hmm?"

"Is there anything you're not telling me?"

Mon-El lifted his head and stood upright again. "Like what?" He furrowed his brows. "What are you thinking?"

Kara looked away from him and bit her lip. "I don't know," she shook her head. A wet strand fell in front of her eyes and she quickly tucked it behind her ear. "I just- you've been helping with that investigation for the whole week and you've barely talked about it. And Winn won't show me or Alex the reports but I heard some agents chatting about it at the DEO. They said something about Cadmus. I was wondering if something went wrong and you've been affected, I know Cadmus experimented with a lot of substances that can hurt aliens."

"Didn't Alex say my tests came back normal? What's got you so worried, babe? Where is this coming from? " he raised a hand and cupped her cheek, prompting her to meet his eyes. "You think I've been lying to you?" And despite what his words might have implied, Mon-El's tone was soft, no hint of annoyance or accusation behind it.

Kara sighed. "No, no, I'm sorry, forget it."

"I can't forget it if it's bothering you," his other hand reached underneath her ribs, a thumb caressing her skin in subtle motions.

"I just- I worry. Too much. All the time. And I don't know how to deal with these dark thoughts, but I don't want to bother you with this either. Because I do trust you. It's just that sometimes," Kara swallowed and sniffed amidst her sentence, "sometimes I'm scared that you might not come back to me, that I might lose you again. And now that you're sick I'm so-" she hung her head low and gripped Mon-El's arms, the tips of her fingers turning white. "I'm so scared," she finished and her voice cracked.

"Hey, look at me," Mon-El urged gently. "I'm okay, we're okay, and I love you, no matter what."

"I know," she mumbled. She was so quiet Mon-El almost didn't hear her.

"I get that you're scared, I'm scared too."

"You are?" Blue eyes widened.

Mon-El chuckled even as his face fell. "I am," he nodded, "especially on days like this one."

"The eclipse," Kara looked upwards, as if she wanted to steal a glance at the afternoon sky. The sun was still on full display, not yet eclipsed, but she'd felt the weakened rays earlier, she'd felt the upcoming phenomenon affecting her body before it'd even happened.

"Is the ring working?"

"Yeah," the blonde flexed her finger, around which Mon-El's Legion ring wrapped. "I feel fine."

"Good," the hero breathed out. He swayed slightly on his feet and Kara gripped his arms again, this time to steady him.

"We should finish up, you need to lie down."

"With you."

"With me," the heroine promised with a smile, then she proceeded to rinse Mon-El's hair off as quickly and gently as she could. It only took her a couple of extra minutes to clean her own self up too, but it was enough for Mon-El to rip the shower curtain off its hinges in another spontaneous burst of unrestrained strength.

**\---**

"Come here, you," Kara prompted quietly, wrapping another blanket around Mon-El's shaking form. The heat had been turned up and the bed looked empty, as the sick hero had curled up and barely occupied enough space. The lights in the loft were low and the place was quiet, to prevent further irritating Mon-El's already sensitive vision and hearing. And Kara hardly moved or made sounds, she just hovered over, a miserable expression plastered onto her face, and tried to ease her boyfriend's discomfort as much as she could.

"Mon? Can I touch you?" she asked.

"Please," echoed the croaky response.

Immediately, arms snaked around his shivering figure and the blonde started rubbing Mon-El's back. His eyes were squeezed shut and his face was tensed, a vein forming across his forehead. Kara didn't need to listen in to hear his heart racing, and she didn't miss the muffled whimpers every time a sudden or a-little-too-loud noise was heard from outside. Things were steadily getting worse and, for once, Supergirl had been rendered useless in the face of a crisis.

"Let me call Alex. You need help, love, look at you." Once again, the heroine tried to convince Mon-El, and once again, she received a shaking motion of his head for an answer. She didn't scoff this time though, not like all the previous ones. She just kissed his hair and held him tighter. She murmured comforting words or hummed tunes, switching between the two whenever one caused him further distress. And amidst it all, she tried to quell her own panic as well, before it grew too intense for her to handle.

Outside, the sun was hidden now, or maybe not completely hidden, but the light had definitely lessened. (Kara couldn't see out the window because the curtains had been drawn closed, and she didn't care enough to look through the barrier.) Either way, the eclipse was already in action, but instead of enjoying the marvelous sight like the rest of the city, she had to stay in and avoid the sunlight as much as she could. The legion ring protected her, however, she still had to be careful.

So, the reporter released a meager sigh and turned her focus back on her sick lover. She glanced down at him and noticed his face had relaxed, his eyes comfortably shut. He'd finally fallen asleep, but even in his dreams the uneasiness had followed him and quiet whimpers escaped him every now and then.

Kara didn't move, she didn't want to disrupt his few -but very much needed- moments of rest. She let him lay his head beneath her shoulder, his face buried in her neck, and felt his steady exhales caressing her skin. If it weren't for the too-warm puffs of air and the continuous shivers, you wouldn't even know Mon-El was sick. After all, he'd fallen asleep like that too many times in the past, it wasn't unusual to Kara. Still, even as she held him and soothed him out of habit and familiarity, her frown didn't fade, nor did the lump lodged in her throat.

Half an hour passed by, slowly but without much fuss. And so, it was inevitable that the peace and quiet would be short-lived. With a twitch and a groan, Mon-El sat up, soaked in sweat and mumbling profanities. Kara called his name out and reached a hand to touch his shoulder, which he allowed but didn't ease into.

"What's wrong, baby?" the blonde asked.

Mon-El raised both palms to cover each of his eyes before he mumbled an answer. "My eyes," he told her, "they're on fire."

Kara furrowed her brows and inched closer. "Is it your heat vision?"

"I think so."

"Let me see you," she requested.

Mon-El hesitated for a couple of seconds before turning to face Kara properly. He let her take his hands in hers and lower them, and then raised his gaze to meet her own.

"That's not heat vision, Mon," Kara examined his red-rimmed eyes and her crinkle appeared when the skin around his cloudy irises turned redder and redder in a way she'd never seen before. "It's not supposed to hurt," she brushed a thumb across his eyebrow, "this is something else."

"It burns," Mon-El groaned again and pulled away.

"Has this happened to you before?"

He shook his head in a negative manner.

Kara frowned. "I think it's about time we asked for Alex's help," she said, and before the legionnaire could protest, she spoke again. "No, we're going to the DEO, this is too much, you can't keep putting it off."

Mon-El just blinked in response, suddenly silent and holding back the usual argument.

"What? Do you expect me to wait until you pass out or go blind or something?"

He blinked again, only this time a brief chuckle rippled past his lips. It was more of a doleful sound than a cheery one. "I honestly can't see you right now," he said and closed his eyes. Even the upper side of his eyelids was inflamed and the redness was spreading fast, touching his cheekbones and his temples.

"What?" Kara exclaimed.

Mon-El's face darkened, "it's all…blurry. Like, too blurry, I can't even see the shape of your face." He rubbed his eyes and sighed when the action didn't help at the slightest.

"Okay," Kara breathed out, "now you're really scaring me," her voice cracked.

She'd sounded like she was about to cry and Mon-El couldn't ignore it. Thus, he sighed again and bit his lip, shifting in his seat in obvious nervousness. "Promise me you won't be mad," he started.

"I don't like where this is going," Kara replied immediately.

"Promise me," Mon-El insisted.

The blonde narrowed her eyes but nodded accordingly. "I promise to try," she agreed at last.

"Give me my ring," the hero said. He blindly reached for Kara's hand but he didn't have any idea where it was located, so he waited for her to give it to him instead.

"Why?"

"All of this will go away. I'm not sick."

"What does that mean?"

"I'm fine, it's just…" Mon-El continued to stall.

"Just?" Kara slid the legion ring across his finger.

"…the eclipse," the hero muttered, words muffled and quiet although still audible.

"The eclipse," the heroine repeated, her tone harsh and cold now. "The one you told me you'd be _totally_ safe from."

Mon-El's vision started to clear, bit by bit, the ring already forming a shield around him and easing off the phenomenon's affect on his weary body. "Well…I lied," he said, still quiet and timid, "it can affect me, not always, but it can."

"Why did you lie to me, Mon-El? You had me worrying sick when you could've prevented all of this!" she snapped.

"You're not the only one who gets scared, Kara," the confession was laced with a sorrowful tone, "I didn't want to risk you getting hurt. So I lied, and I'm really, really sorry about that, but I'm not sorry for wanting to protect you."

"In your expense!" the blonde yelled back.

"It doesn't matter as long as you're safe."

"It doesn't-" Kara huffed, "I don't even-" she stood and started pacing. "You- you lied to me-" she accused.

"I'm sorry," Mon-El apologized once more.

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, saw his head hanging low, his hair still sweat-soaked, and she paused her frenzy to check on him. "You're okay?" she asked, still more worried than mad.

The Daxamite nodded. "The symptoms are already fading," he assured.

Kara looked at him for a long moment. She wanted to yell and shout and blame him. She wanted to scold him about not taking care of himself and still keeping secrets even though they'd agreed they would try not to do that. She wanted to be mad and make it loud and clear. But she looked at him and she held back; because the color was returning to his skin, and the redness was almost gone from around his eyes, and the trembling and shivering had eased to a complete stop. "I'm mad at you," she said instead.

"I know," Mon-El responded and leaned into his lover's touch when she caressed his cheek.

"But I get it," Kara continued, "I think I would've done the same."

"It's not okay but I- I didn't know what else to do. I kept going back to all the times I've seen you get hurt and how I couldn't do anything to protect you. But I knew I could protect you now, for once I could do something."

"Mon-El," blue eyes locked with gray ones, "you don't have to protect me. It's just an eclipse, I'll feel a little weak, but I'll survive."

"And what if a new threat appeared today, what if you had to go out there and fight? What about then? I couldn't just stand there and watch you get beat up, and when I tried to convince you to let me step up for the day, you didn't even consider it."

"Yeah, I didn't," the blonde admitted sheepishly, "sorry," she mumbled, "I should've listened to you. I get a little overconfident sometimes."

"I know," Mon-El smiled and pulled the Kryptonian to sit in his lap. "I'm sorry for today, I didn't mean to worry you, and I definitely didn't want to lie, but I panicked. I was terrified, babe, last time there was an eclipse you collapsed, I didn't want that to happen again."

"I get it, but I expect you to talk to me next time you feel this way instead of keeping secrets."

"I promise," he said and kissed her.

Kara held him close by the collar of his shirt and deepened the kiss, taking the lead like she usually would. "What am I gonna do with you?" she groaned and pecked his lips repeatedly. "You can't do this again, _ever_ ," she warned.

Mon-El shook his head and made a negative sound in his throat.

In response, her shoulders relaxed and she decided to let it go, just that one time. "Good, 'cause if you do, I'm going to kill you," she only half-joked.

"Alright," he agreed.

"Idiot," Kara whispered and pulled him into another kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments make my days...(!) ;)


End file.
